Merle Norman Cosmetics and Day Spa

Regular face maintenance often leads to a glowing complexion, compliments from total strangers, and the ability to purchase Happy Meals without a fake ID. Retaste the cuisine of childhood with today's Groupon: for $20, you get a half-hour facial with a custom mask and exfoliating peel at Merle Norman Cosmetics and Day Spa in Gahanna (a $50 value).

The beauty mavens at Merle Norman Cosmetics and Day Spa enhance complexions using beauty products developed and produced in the United States. During the 30-minute express facial, a skilled aesthetician ushers guests into a private spa area to perform a Clarisonic deep-cleansing treatment, which channels sonic frequencies into pores to help oust squatting oil and dirt. Fresh skin usurps dull, dead cells via an exfoliating peel, and a hand massage relaxes palms stressed from remembering their new boss's secret handshake. Finally, the aesthetician unpuffs peepers with an eye treatment and spreads an anti-aging mask imbued with a customized blend of antioxidants and vitamins over visages to help turn back epidermal clocks. Each client also receives a personalized skincare profile to guide future face-pampering regimens and give newly radiant mugs a sense of self-identity without going through regrettable goth phases.

Merle Norman Cosmetics and Day Spa

In the late 1920s, the Great Depression was rendering most Americans professionally and financially paralyzed. But in a small California kitchen, Merle Norman was putting a plan in motion to formulate her own skincare products and share them with family and friends. She truly believed in her formulas, knowing that by getting them on as many faces as possible, she would develop a following of customers. She was right—within a few years she and her nephew were opening their first studio in Santa Monica, and they eventually unveiled a series of independently operated stores that enabled women to take ownership during a time of gender-based limitations such as men-only restrooms.

Today, in approximately 2,000 stores across three countries, the three basic principles of Merle's original vision still apply. Each studio is independently owned and fosters an in-depth knowledge of the company's own line of makeup and skincare products. Just as Merle shared her creations with close friends and sallow mannequins more than 80 years ago, today's aestheticians embody the business's "try before you buy" philosophy. A menu of complimentary studio services—from foundation checks to express facials—allows patrons to sample the lauded brand before committing to the purchase of products or full spa treatments.